Suwon District Prosecutors' Office Investigates Chief Prosecutor Moon Hong-seong Regarding 'Kim Hak-ui Illegal Departure Investigation Interference'

Former Deputy Minister of Justice Kim Hak-ui. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] The Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, investigating allegations of illegal travel bans against former Deputy Minister of Justice Kim Hak-ui, has questioned Moon Hong-seong, the head of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office and former senior researcher at the Anti-Corruption and Violence Division of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in 2019, regarding suspicions that the division exerted undue pressure on the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office Anyang Branch's investigation.

According to the legal community on the 15th, the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office's "Kim Hak-ui Travel Ban Case Investigation Team" (led by Lee Jeong-seop, Chief of the Criminal Division 3) questioned Director Moon last week as a witness.

The whistleblower on the illegal travel ban allegations against former Deputy Minister Kim claimed in a second public interest report that in 2019, during the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office Anyang Branch's investigation into the leak of travel ban information on former Deputy Minister Kim, they detected signs that an emergency travel ban was imposed illegally and attempted to start an investigation, but the investigation was halted due to pressure from the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Anti-Corruption and Violence Division at the time.

Since the second public interest report was received, Director Moon has voluntarily recused himself from directing the investigation due to concerns over conflicts of interest.

At that time, the head of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Anti-Corruption Division was Lee Seong-yoon, Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, and Director Moon was a senior researcher in the Anti-Corruption Division, reporting within the chain of command. The investigation team is also known to have recently summoned Kim Hyeong-geun, Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Seoul Northern District Prosecutors' Office and then head of the Investigation Command Division of the Anti-Corruption Division, as a witness for questioning.

As investigations continue into prosecutors who worked in the Anti-Corruption Division and the chain of command at the time regarding the alleged pressure to halt the investigation, it is expected that Chief Prosecutor Lee will also be questioned soon.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice extended the dispatch of Im Se-jin, Chief of the Criminal Division 2 at the Pyeongtaek Branch of the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office, who joined the investigation team last month and whose return deadline was approaching, until March 14. Dispatches of prosecutors for more than one month require approval from the Ministry of Justice.

However, a Suwon District Prosecutors' Office official stated on the day, "We cannot confirm whether any specific individual has been summoned for questioning or the details of the investigation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.